PLAINVILLE - John Kisluk has failed to gather enough petition signatures to force a Democratic primary for a Town Council seat and has decided against running as an independent, as he did last election.

Kisluk was attempting to gather 200 petition signatures before Aug. 9. If he had been successful, the local Democratic party would have been forced to have a primary on Sept. 12, with the five top votegetters making up the ticket for this November’s election.

Since he failed, the Democratic ticket will remain incumbents Robert Ciotto, Rosemary Morante and Christopher Wazorko and challengers Jesse Gnazzo and Richard Ireland Jr.

Kisluk said he collected about 75 signatures.

“I should have had some Democrat circulators helping me,” he said. “When you go to a neighborhood with a possible 40 signatures in the evening after dinner time and only get two people to answer the door, it will not happen. This past Saturday I was also rained out. I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.”

Kisluk expressed some dismay that several people he spoke to sounded “clueless.”

“I had to explain to them what I was doing,” he said. “I guess the people just aren’t interested.”

Kisluk has said that he was looking to petition his way onto the ballot because, at the last council meeting, the residents of Perron Road had united in opposition to a proposed bike path that would have come through their neighborhood.

Councilors have debated Kisluk on those assertions when he has raised them at meetings, which he attends regularly. He said he will continue to make his voice be heard at meetings.

Brian M. Johnson can be reached at 860-973-1806 or bjohnson@bristolpress.com.